The Cantono Frigerio system was an Italian electric power supply for trackless

trolleybus A trolleybus (also known as trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tramin the 1910s and 1920sJoyce, J.; King, J. S.; and Newman, A. G. (1986). ''British Trolleybus Systems'', pp. 9, 12. London: Ian Allan Publishing. .or troll ...

es with two wires about 20 inches (50 cm) apart being contacted by a four-wheeled collector on a single

trolley pole A trolley pole is a tapered cylindrical pole of wood or metal, used to transfer electricity from a "live" (electrified) overhead wire to the control and the electric traction motors of a tram or trolley bus. It is a type of current collector. Th ...

. In English publications it was often described as Filovia system although the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

term ''filovia'' means literally ''wire way'', i.e. a trolleybus line or a trolleybus system.

History

Esposizione Internazionale Milano - 1906, 'Filovia' delle Società per la Trazione Elettrica

Werner Siemens Ernst Werner Siemens (von Siemens from 1888; ; ; 13 December 1816 – 6 December 1892) was a German electrical engineer, inventor and industrialist. Siemens's name has been adopted as the SI unit of electrical conductance, the siemens. He foun ...

introduced the first collector for trackless vehicles with his

Electromote The Electromote was the world's first vehicle run like a trolleybus, which was first presented to the public on April 29, 1882, by its inventor Dr. Ernst Werner von Siemens in Halensee, a suburb of Berlin, Germany. In 1847, Siemens told his bro ...

cart in 1882, and in 1901

Max Schiemann Max or MAX may refer to: Animals * Max (dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog * Max (English Springer Spaniel), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of OBE) * Max (gorilla) ...

demonstrated sliding contact shoes, which were pressed by springs against the overhead wires. Five years later ''Eugenio Cantono'' from

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

combined these two principles and exhibited six trolleybuses at the

world's fair A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition or an expo, is a large international exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specif ...

Milan International, 1906. The power supply differed from those in other countries in that, as a collector, a four-wheeled truck ran underneath the wires, held in place by a trolley pole in the usual manner. The possible deviation on either side of the direct route was 10–12 feet (3.0 to 3.5 m). The cars were usually equipped with two 15-horsepower (11 kW) motors and had a carrying capacity of 20 to 24 passengers. Its design and construction have been so perfected that it would take easily very sharp curves, and would not leave the trolley wires even when running at a speed of 18 miles per hour (29 km/h). They could master larger grades than

tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...

s, it was claimed.Railless Traction at Bradford, Light Railway and Tramway Journal, 7 April 1911.
(English) The overhead wires had a diameter of ⅜ inches (9 mm) for 600 Volt direct current and could be used in both directions. The drivers stood upright in a cab similar to that of a tram. Cantono was supported by the Fabbrica Rotabili Avantreni Motori (F.R.A.M.) in

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

, which he had founded, and by the Società per la Trazione Elettrica in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

, which produced ''Frigerio'' branded cars. This led to the term ''Cantono Frigerio system''. The system was very successful in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, where trackless trolley lines were very highly regarded in the first quarter of the 20th century. A total of more than 50 miles (80 km) of line were in use to the satisfaction of the municipalities by 1916. In some cities subsidies were paid for establishing such lines.:File:Cyclopedia of applied electricity - a general reference work on direct-current generators and motors, storage batteries, electrochemistry, welding, electric wiring, meters, electric lighting, electric (14593781378).jpg, Cyclopedia of applied electricity - a general reference work on direct-current generators and motors, storage batteries, electrochemistry, welding, electric wiring, meters, electric lighting, electric. 1916. Page 399
on-line
(English)

Systems

References

External links

*{{Commons category-inline, Cantono Frigerio System Trolleybus transport in Italy

History

Systems

See also

References

External links